National guidelines for sexuality education in Nigeria

Access to age appropriate, gender-sensitive sexuality educationin a socio-culturally diverse country is very challenging especially where the culture of silence on sexuality issues is the norm. Thus when Action Health Incorporated (AHI)a youth serving non-governmental organization in Nigeria led advocacy for access to sexuality education in Nigeria, the catalytic document for this initiative was the development, endorsement of, and public release of the National Guidelines for Sexuality Education in Nigeria. This publication was adapted from the Guidelines for Sexuality Education produced by the Sexuality Information and Education Council of the United States (SIECUS).

Several factors aided the success of this initiative including: · Establishment of a broad based task force for Sexuality Education in Nigeria by Action Health Incorporated · Broad based support for sexuality education by over 200 organisation including National NGOs, International NGOs and Governmental Agencies · Media partnership to promote the need for sexuality education · The increasing HIV/AIDS prevalence rate in Nigeria, especially with young people accounting for over fifty percent of new infections · Young people accounting for majority of the complications of unsafe abortion in Nigeria · Partnership between SIECUS and AHI with funding support from the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation. This initiative has led to the accomplishment of:

1. A Nationally approved curriculum which is being used in schools at all levels in Nigeria, called the National Family Life HIV/AIDS Education (FLHE) Curriculum

2. The implementation of the FLHE curriculum by most states of the Federation with funding support from governments and donors